"It was quite mind-boggling to see Velucan and Lemius being so excited to do the task given to them."
"I would argue they are very fond of fighting."
"No. They are starting to see it—the meaning behind the fight."
I look at Valeria from the corner of my eyes. She is calmly sipping her tea, looking like she doesn't want to explain what she said. The meaning behind every battle the Warriors have gone through has always been to protect the Kingdom's sovereignty and the safety of their families. There is a meaning behind the fight, so I wonder what Valeria means by her words.
Maybe, she is referring to the Warrior's desire to conquer instead of to survive which is what they have been doing. I still think those who have fallen in the battle before my arrival didn't die for naught. Their sacrifice managed to keep many of the Verniculos citizens safe. Though, it seems like dying in the middle of conquest has more value in their eyes.
I don't agree with that mindset, but I prefer that scenario. The fact that we can think about having conquest means that we no longer worry about our survival. I don't know how long it will last, which is why I am preparing everything. Until we can no longer do it, we have to conquer as many Kingdoms as possible.
"Do you have any plans for the incoming Demon Kings Summit?" Valeria breaks the silence as she puts down her teacup. "I am afraid you have to look for sleeping dragons to become your punching bags. I don't think you will find strong opponents unless you infiltrate the enemy's safest territory."
"We don't have to look for sleeping dragons—we already have the awake ones," I reply simply.
Valeria turns her face toward me and I can tell she is quirking an eyebrow underneath her blind mask. I merely smile faintly and she soon looks away. I can't tell if she already knows what Pride can do, but she knows not to prod any further. I am blessed to have an understanding girlfriend who knows her boundary.
Registering the lack of conversation around us, my eyes scan the people who are sitting at the round table in the gazebo. All of them but Millonia are looking at Valeria and me as if wondering if I am indeed dating her. They are probably quite flabbergasted by how we interact. We can't help acting professionally when we are not alone, but they don't have to know it.
They only recover from their stupor when I gesture at the cookies prepared by the maids. They clear their throat before munching on the cookies. freewebnove(l)
"What do you think of the brownies?" I ask Shanifa, surprising her.
"It has the perfect amount of chocolate. It is sweet but not to the point of making me sick," she answers after giving it some thought.
"Does that mean you prefer sweet cookies over bitter ones?"
"Who eats bitter cookies?" Lunea chimes in, followed by a consecutive nod from Decima and Maxine.
"This guy right here." Millonia points at me. "Sweetness disgusts him. He is a realistic person, so he doesn't want to eat anything that doesn't reflect reality."
"Is that why you never let us eat your cookies?" Maxine wonders.
"Why does life have to be bitter? I think it is pretty sweet depending on how you see it," Decima comments.
"This guy's eyes are covered in ink. He can't picture this world decorated with rainbows and sunshine." fre(e)webnovel
The reason why I am not too fond of sweet things is that I hate lingering tastes except for what comes from spices. I like dark chocolate, but not sugar-powered chocolate. I should have said that to Millonia instead of messing with her at that time. I ended up saying such a cringeworthy statement and she has been making fun of me for it ever since.
As I am about to divert the topic, I feel a disturbance in the air. No one other than Valeria and I seems to notice it. I am already familiar with the aura that is slightly leaking out of the crack in the space, so I only glance at my back from the corner of my eyes. A second passes and someone appears behind me. Her presence surprises everyone but doesn't alert them.
"Thank goodness that geezer is very intrigued with the way the Dark Elf builds their houses. I wouldn't have gotten here if that wasn't the case," the person grumbles.
"Welcome back, Aurelia," I greet. "I hope you have cleared up the misunderstanding."
"Well, let's say we have decided to turn over a new leaf."
Nothing has changed—I can tell from her tone alone. Aurelia doesn't seem to care about it as she is more focused on looking for her seat. A maid is carrying one for her, but she stops the maid in her tracks when her eyes land on my lap. Disregarding the stare that Valeria gives her, she sits on my lap.
Fortunately, my girlfriend is not your average girlfriend. At least, that is what I believe until her hand lands on my shoulder. I instinctively raise my hands and look her in the eyes to show her that I don't have any plans to commit an act of infidelity. Though, I seem to have misunderstood her considering what she says next.
'She is into you and she doesn't even know it. She unconsciously seals her power because she wants to rely on you,' Valeria says through telepathy, which she hasn't done for quite some time.
That aside, I just realized something important. What Quetzalcoatl claimed and what Valeria just said is different. Quetzalcoatl claimed that Aurelia would be able to fully utilize her power when she realized she had fallen for me. On the other hand, Valeria said that I was the reason for Aurelia's sealed power.
As I look at Valeria in puzzlement, she shares her knowledge. She says that, at one point, Quetzalcoatl's Spell did seal Aurelia's power. Aurelia broke the seal when she fell for me and she didn't realize it. When she felt that she was getting stronger day by day, she feared that she would overgrow me. Unconsciously, she sealed back her power, so she could remain weaker than me and on my side.
This is just Valeria's speculation, but I can see this happening. Aurelia is not the brightest among the people I am good friends with, after all.
"Are you going to Ne Okozmo when Quetzalcoatl returns?"
"Yeah, but the geezer won't be returning soon."
"Why is it?"
"He wants to enjoy the One Millennium Fest."
As I quirk an eyebrow, Aurelia explains what One Millennium Fest is. The Dark Elf has not been holding any festival for a millennium because there is nothing worth celebrating. Their victory over the Light Elf is worth celebrating, so they decided to hold one. For the reason that is already stated, they name the festival One Millennium Fest.
They will properly thank me and the Dragons for what we did. From Aurelia's explanation of what they will do, the festival is similar to a coronation ceremony for me. They seem very eager to make 'The Owner of Amizanima' my official title. I won't stop them since it won't change a thing. It is not like I will have extra responsibilities with such a title.
Time passes quickly when you enjoy it. Six hours pass in the blink of an eye. The orange sky becomes our cue to end our conversation and get back to mind our business. We didn't talk about anything related to work. We purely spent those six hours to know each other better. It is something that people normally do when they talk while having tea.
I spent most of the six hours observing the others talk. Valeria is a naturally quiet person, so she didn't contribute anything to the conversation from the very beginning. My observation allows me to grasp everyone's mental state better. All of them are feeling safe and anticipating the future. They have a lot to handle but love doing it, which is a good thing.
Humans are liabilities. I am glad these humans are different. So far, all of them still condone my behavior. I feel slightly bad for doubting Lunea. Even though she might have to kill her father because of my command in three months, she still doesn't show disagreement. She listens to my words and accepts the plans I propose easily.
I have never tried brainwashing her, but she seems to see me as her light from heaven. Of course, I may be wrong. She is the most innocent person I know and I can't tell how stupid an innocent person can be sometimes. She may have developed a twisted view that she accepts as something right and I will never know.
Regardless, I don't have any loose cannons on my side at the moment. In other words, our internal should remain stable during my absence.
As I go back to indulge myself in work, days pass. Time passes even more quickly as I have Valeria accompanying me. The thing I have been working on is Antares' development plan. I need Maxine and her aides to be able to know how to effectively utilize the city's income during my absence, which is why the plan is crucial. I can't let them pile the money and do nothing with it.
Fortunately, I managed to finish it today which is just a day before the One Millennium Fest is held. What is the hurry? You may wonder. I have decided to go to Ne Okozmo and train my Dragon heritage after the festival. Therefore, today will be my last day in Antares for a while. This will also be my last time seeing Valeria for a while, so I spend it entirely with her.
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